Another Chance at Love (Another Series Book 1)

by Suzanne Sweeney

  The room is warm and the fluffy towel covering the table is soft and comforting. When Casey returns, she brings with her the sea salt scrub and massage oil. Her voice is soothing and I swear I can feel the toxins leaving my body and all the tension being released as she works her magic. The more she works, the more I begin to relax.

  After our time is up, Casey leaves to get me some water. I roll off the table and stand, covering myself in a plush terrycloth robe.

  Casey escorts me to my next stop – a hydrotherapy tub filled with milk and honey. She leaves me alone in the small room, giving me some privacy as I shed my robe and climb into the invigorating bath. Sheer curtains enclose the small area, billowing gently as the cool breeze from the ocean sweeps through the open windows.

  Casey knocks on the door before entering, bringing with her a tray of goodies. There’s a cold neck towel, chilled cucumber slices for my eyes, and a small pitcher of effervescent lemon water. She places them all on the small bamboo table beside me and asks if I need anything before she leaves me alone to relax.

  I’m feeling immeasurably better with each passing minute. The calming music, soothing milk bath, delightful scents, and pulsating jet sprays, are all working in tandem to erase the effect of an unfortunate night of bad choices.

  I remove the cucumbers from my eyes so I can pour myself another glass of the miracle water. Just as I’m about to grab the pitcher, my phone lights up. Illuminated on the screen is evidence of countless missed calls and messages.

  Scrolling through them, I see there’s two missed calls from Cole, three from Brie and six or seven from Cait, along with a handful of texts. I’m in my happy place right now, and I know that they are going to try to drag me back into some sort of drama.

  So rather than allowing myself to get sucked in, I completely power down and turn off my phone.

  No matter who it is, no matter what they want, they can wait. Especially Cole. I’m not ready to hear whatever he has to say right now.

  My new friend Casey comes back in to collect me and escort me to my final stop – my head and neck massage. “Your companion has requested a couple’s massage for the two of you,” she explains as she leads me into yet another room.

  As she opens the door to show me in, I’m expecting to find two massage tables side-by-side. But instead, I’m greeted by two massage chairs, not unlike the kind at the pedicure station in my favorite nail salon.

  I’m wrapped tightly in my new terry cloth robe that feels amazing against my skin, slick from the honey bath and still zinging from the pulse of the Jacuzzi. Casey hands me a remote control and shows me how to work the settings to massage my back, my bottom, and my legs.

  As I play with changing up the speed and intensity of the massage, the door swings open and in sashays Declan, donning a white robe identical to mine. His skin is pink and his hair is still damp from his sauna and sticking out in all different directions. He looks comically adorable.

  He is followed closely by his masseuse, Kathy. Dec plops himself down and listens attentively as Kathy gives him a speech similar to mine about the chair’s massage controls.

  We have only a moment to chat before the massages begin. “You look a thousand times better,” Declan smiles. “How do you feel?”

  “Like a new woman.” It’s true. I feel like I could take on the world right now.

  Casey reclines my chair to begin my head and neck massage while Kathy raises Declan’s feet to begin his foot massage. He reaches to grab my hand and gives it an affirming squeeze. I gladly squeeze his right back. I hope he knows how much his friendship means to me and always will.

  After a quick shower in the changing room, I slip on my dress and meet Declan in the lobby. He, too, is freshly showered and dressed, and paying our tab. I watch with renewed appreciation as he flirts and teases the young girl behind the desk. He leans in closely and speaks softly. I can spot his moves from a mile away. She bites her lip and twirls a lock of hair around her finger as she smiles up at him. He says something that makes her giggle as he signs for our bill. He hands her back a copy of the receipt and in return, she hands him back the credit card. His hand lingers a little too long.

  Declan turns and walks away, leaving the young miss practically breathless. He clearly just made her day.

  “Ready?” I ask as he approaches.

  “I am,” he grins. “And thanks to you, I have a dinner date for tonight.” He turns around and smiles at the young lady who hasn’t taken her eyes off my friend and companion. “Oh, here, this is yours – before I forget.” He hands me my credit card. “Thanks for a great day.”

  I take the card from his hand. It’s the one I gave him last night to pay for the alcohol. “Um, you’re welcome?” I answer, unsure of the proper response. He’s thanking me for something I didn’t realize I had done. How generous of me.

  We take a few steps into the parking lot and I quickly pull down my sunglasses and keep my head down as I make my way back to my car.

  Although I feel a thousand times better, I’m afraid my reflexes might be a little slow, so it’s up to Declan to drive us home safely.

  Declan slows as he turns down my street. I look up into his face and find him staring straight ahead. There’s a big green truck parked in front of my house – it’s Ugly Betty.

  “Do you want me to turn around?” he asks.

  “No, let’s get this over with.” He has a game tonight, so I can’t imagine this will take very long.

  As we get closer, I can see Cole standing in front of his truck with arms folded across his chest. He doesn’t look pleased.

  Declan tells me to stay in the car, and for now, I comply. He opens the door, steps out, and immediately goes on the offensive. “Dude, if you’re here to stir up more shit from last night, do us both a favor and fuck off.”

  Cole holds up one hand to Declan and dismisses his threat. “Declan, man – don’t do this. I have no problem with you, unless you’re trying to come between me and Kenny. And frankly, it looks like that’s exactly what’s going on here.” He’s right in Declan’s face right now. “Unless you want to tell me otherwise.”

  I have to give it to Declan, he doesn’t back down easily. “I’m not going to tell you shit. If you can’t manage your own relationship, that’s not my problem.”

  “I find my girlfriend nearly passed out in your arms last night. Today, when I come looking for her, she’s out gallivanting with you to God-knows-where. I’d say that makes it your problem.”

  “You want to know where we were?” Declan asks.

  Cole nods. “Yeah, I do.”

  “She was hurting and I did something to help. So I took her for a massage. Because that’s what I do, I take care of the people I care about. If you don’t like it, you can go to hell.”

  “And who paid for this massage?”

  “Don’t worry about.”

  “You made her pay for it, didn’t you?”

  “Fuck you.”

  “Yeah, that’s what I thought. Don’t be a fucking leach – you’re better than that.”

  He walks over to my side of the car and opens the door. He leans down and stares straight into my eyes. “Just tell me one thing – am I wasting my time here? I need to know where your head is at, because honestly, I’m thinking you’re done with us.”

  “You walked away from me. Twice. What was I supposed to think?”

  “I shouldn’t have done that. I fucked up. But when I came back to tell you, it looked like you’d already moved on. With Declan. Twice. What was I supposed to think?”

  “And you think Declan is the problem?” I say and roll my eyes. “Trust me, he’s not the problem here.”

  “Message received. You have my number if you change your mind.”

  He stands up, turns around, and walks back to his truck, leaving me alone and heartbroken for the second time in as many days.

  That went about as well as I had feared it would.

  I’m so tired of disappointing everyone.
I rarely measure up to my mother’s impossibly high standards. I’ve been pushing Philip’s limits nearly every day since Cole came along. Brie and Cait are not exactly pleased with me recently. Who’s left?

  Declan wants me to go with him to TitleWave, most likely to keep my mind off of what just happened. But I need to be alone right now and it’s probably best if he gives me some space to think about everything that just happened before I piss him off, too.

  Once he leaves, I power my phone back on and check in with Cait and Brie. I’m relieved to find out that everything is under control and all the missed calls were just Cait’s warnings that Cole was trying to find me. She refused to tell him where I was, but assured him I wouldn’t be gone for long.

  Good girl, Cait. Chicks before dicks.

  Tucked away in the back corner of the backyard is an old hammock. Today feels like the perfect day to try it out. So I grab my phone and earbuds, and head outside. The fresh air will do me some good and I could use the peace and quiet.

  The wind whispers through the trees as I lie down, listening to the soothing dulcet tones of Adele. Her songs are about the ups and downs of relationships, the tapestry of it and the muddiness of it.

  The more I listen, I can’t help but get hypnotized. I listen as she croons about the general intimacy of relationships. Sometimes it sounds very sexual, but I know it’s not only that. It’s about every aspect of intimacy in a relationship. It’s about wanting everything.

  I want the good, the bad, the warts and all. I want the amazing.

  Eventually, I drift off to sleep deep in thought.

  Suddenly, I startle awake, heart pounding, completely disoriented. I feel like I was about to jump off a cliff while being chased by clowns. Not cute clowns—scary ones. The kind of clowns that were in the paintings at my dentist’s office when I was a kid. The clowns that smiled at me smugly when I was getting my teeth cleaned and cavities filled.

  “It’s just me Kentucky. Calm down. It was just a dream.”

  I look up into Declan’s kind face. He must have woken me. “The nightmares are back,” I unhappily tell him. “What time is it?”

  “Five o’clock. I came back to get ready. I’m meeting Becca at Martell’s on the boardwalk in an hour. I wonder if Joe’s working tonight.” He hands me an ice-cold bottle of water, which I happily accept.

  “Thanks. This helps.” My heart rate slows and I begin to feel better. “Um, Dec – do you think we can talk for a minute?”

  “Yeah, sure. But do you mind if we go inside? These mosquitos are killing me.”

  He leads me into the house where he grabs his duffel bag and tosses it on the couch. He fishes through it for a change of clothes as I begin my confession.

  “I couldn’t forgive myself if I didn’t apologize for everything. I’m so sorry that I got you involved in all of this.”

  His eyes twinkle down at me, an easy smile on his lips. “Kensie, you don’t have one damned thing to apologize for. I put myself in the middle and I’d do it again each and every time.”

  He stops and explains. “I didn’t have to help you when you got drunk, but I did. I didn’t have to take you out today when you were at death’s door, but I did. I did those things because I care about you. Not because you asked me to.”

  “Well, I hope you know that I would do the same thing for you,” I tell him.

  “I’m counting on it,” he smiles.

  “But Dec – there is one thing I need to talk to you about.”

  He’s back to rummaging through his duffle bag looking for something. “Yeah?” he calls over his shoulder. “What’s that?”

  “It’s about my credit card,” I tell him.

  “Okay. I gave it back to you, didn’t I?” He waits for me to elaborate. I’m a little surprised at his lack of insight. How could he think that using my card without my permission was okay?

  “No, it’s not that,” I explain. Nervously, I try to tell him my concerns. “I just want you to know that I’m not completely comfortable with you using my credit card without my permission.”

  He stands up and looks at me with confusion written all over his face. “Seriously? Kentucky, you gave me your credit card last night. Don’t you remember?”

  “No, I remember,” I assure him.

  “You told me to use it,” he argues.

  “On liquor,” I correct him. “You never even asked if you could use it for the spa.”

  “I didn’t? Damn, I thought I did. My bad. If I did ask, what would you have said?”

  “I would have said yes.”

  “Then I don’t see what the big deal is. You always pay for everything. You pay when we go out to dinner. You pay when we go out for drinks. You pay when we go shopping. When we go out together, you never let any of us pay for anything. Right?”

  My shoulders sag just a little, mostly because he’s right. I came into the money very fast and very unexpectedly. And frankly, it gave me great pleasure to share my new wealth with those that I care the most about. What I didn’t realize at the time is that I was becoming a living, breathing ATM machine. And I have no one to blame but myself for that.

  “You’re right. But now that I own a home, and a business, and a new fancy car, I think I have to start being a little more frugal with my money,” I tell him. “I can’t be the Sugar Mama for our little family any more,” I tease.

  “Sugar Mama, huh?” he chuckles. “I never thought of it like that. It sounds . . . dirty. I like it.”

  He finishes going through his things, and then sits with me on the couch. “So have you heard any more from Ole King Cole? When he left, he wasn’t much of a merry old soul.”

  “I was a little surprised you even let me talk to him. I thought you two were going to hurt each other.”

  “Nah – Cole’s a good guy, despite the name calling before. I knew he’d never actually hurt you. It’s all just posturing. He needed to let me know that he doesn’t appreciate it when I’m around so much and I had to let him know that I’m not about to let him hurt you.”

  “Oh!” I blurt out. “All that huffing and puffing was just a pissing contest.”

  “Exactly. If things had gone differently, we might just have moved on to whipping out our dicks to see whose is the largest.”

  “Ew!”

  “I would win, in case you were wondering.”

  “Ew! Stop. Please.”

  Declan laughs at himself, obviously impressed with his own humor. And his own . . . Wee Willy Winkie that apparently isn’t so wee.

  Shaking my head I repeat, “I really am sorry for all the drama.”

  “You are a little high maintenance, but I think I can handle it,” he teases.

  “Hey! That’s the second time I’ve been called high maintenance this weekend. Don’t say it again,” I warn.

  “Then don’t give me a reason to,” he bites back. Declan gets up, gives me a kiss on the cheek, and heads upstairs to shower and get ready for his date.

  CHAPTER 26

  I HAVE TO DECIDE WHAT TO DO WITH MYSELF. Brie and Cait have the shop under control and Cole’s on his way to the ball field. I could sit around and be lazy while I binge watch last season’s Bachelor, or I could buckle down and actually get some work done.

  Now that the toxins and poisons have been excised from my body, I have a renewed vigor. If I’m going to survive the winter and continue to pay my bills on time, writing another book is no longer an option. So I shoot off a quick e-mail to Gail just to let her know. . .

  I’m back.

  And it feels great to say that. I haven’t felt truly myself since I stopped writing.

  It’s just a matter of time before I’m hit with a contract and deadlines. As soon as Gail can get the legal department to dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s, I’ll be working against the clock. So why not get a head start?

  Now that my mind is made up, there’s only one thing left to do . . . tell Philip.

  I think I’d rather ride the subway in Manha
ttan . . . naked . . . at rush hour.

  After careful thought and deliberation, I decide that telling my brother about my plans can wait a day or two. I’ll see him soon enough for our weekly family dinner, and I think that will be as good a time as any.

  Besides, there could be a zombie apocalypse and if that happens, then I won’t have to tell him at all.

  While I wait for Armageddon, I can work. I decide to crank up some music, kick back, and read what I’ve written so far.

  Suzi and her friends are on vacation. Her boyfriend, Liam, just got a promotion and is completely focused on his work. Suzi feels abandoned and forgotten. So she and her friends decide to take a much-needed vacation to the Sunshine State.

  Enter Henry, a struggling playwright by day and musician by night, who turns her world upside down.

  In a short amount of time, I manage to get quite a bit of writing done. It’s fun to relive the excitement of new love: the electricity that passes with a first touch, a stolen glance, and not-so-innocent flirting. Recalling how everything that was once gray and colorless suddenly lights up like fireworks in the sky is good for my soul and my mind.

  It reminds me of all the reasons why I fell for Cole. It’s not just about him, although I cannot deny he’s a pretty amazing guy – most of the time. It’s more about how I feel when I’m with him. How one man can make me feel like both a princess and a porn star is mind-blowing.

  Some people go their entire lives without ever having that kind of a connection with someone. I’d be a fool to let that slip through my fingers without a fight.

  My love story with Trent will never make the pages of any romance novel worth reading. Trent and I never fought. We disagreed occasionally and disappointed one another frequently, but our tiffs never erupted into a no-holds-barred, completely impassioned fight.

  You can't have a true love story with someone who is complacent instead of passionate.

  Cole is my love story.

  I miss him and I don’t want to fight any more. If I don’t tell him now, I may lose him forever.